Administrator Pistole has reached out to the gentleman whose urostomy bag leaked during secondary screening at DTW. The Administrator promised to look into the incident. We’re reviewing the training that’s already being provided to our officers to see if needs to be updated. When our officers are hired, they are given extensive training on screening passengers with disabilities and they continue to receive recurring training throughout their career. TSA has established a coalition of over 70 disability-related groups and organizations to help us understand the concerns of persons with disabilities and medical conditions. These groups have assisted TSA with integrating the unique needs of persons with disabilities into our airport operations.

Also, keep in mind that passengers with disabilities can contact one of our Customer Support Managers to coordinate their screening. This way, they can have a chance to speak with an expert and explain the best possible way to be screened prior to arriving at the airport.

74 comments:

“TSOs described rushing through course material without devoting the attention needed to retain the lessons,” reads the report....

“TSA officials agreed that if TSOs hurry through training courses because they are not being allocated sufficient time by management or they do not have access to training computers, they may not receive adequate or quality training.”

I think you need to take a lesson from Zappos in terms of customer service. No amount of "training" is going to take someone who is, in general, rude and vulgar to customers and turn them into a happy-to-serve-you personality.

The key to success is having employees who take pride and care about their job. I don't think the screener in this situation gave a hoot about the person they were rubbing down. Quit hiring, and continuing to employ these people who are on a power trip.

Would you rather have 20 rude and underpaid employees at a checkpoint that aren't doing a good job, or 15 that are paid better, and doing a commensurate job?

Why have you created a screening protocol that requires gentlemen like the man you left soaking in his own urine to expose their ostomy bags to your screeners in the first place? This is not an unexpected result, and when you unveiled these idiotic strip-search scanners many people wanted to know exactly what your protocol would be for ostomy patients. Apparently the answer is to leave them drenched in their own urine. Disgusting.

Good, he should. The thing is that the recent controversy over the pat downs and naked scan/radiation machines is just showing the rest of the public what frequent fliers have been saying for a while: The TSA does not care about anything but their dumb procedures.

If you claim the TSA agents receive extensive training before they can work with the public, either that training needs to be doubled or changed. The bark, they yell, they are rude, they make everyone feel guilty, they act like little dictators! This case of the man with the urine bag leaking is just another example.

The TSA agents at each checkpoint are rude, don't care, and ARE one of the biggest problems in the system.

Please tell us EXACTLY how to request new gloves on the TSA employee who is performing our pat-down. I don't want to be touched in private places with a glove which has been worn when touching other peoples private places.

Once again TSA proves they have no foresight. Shoe bomber? Now you have to remove your shoes. Shampoo bomber? Now your liquids are restricted. Underwear bomber? Now you have to go through the x-ray machine or get an "enhanced" pat-down. Printer cartridge bomber? Now printer cartridges are banned. Guy gets his own urine spilled on him? Now TSA is actually going to provide some kind of training. I understand you can't foresee everything, but you've got to be more pro-active. This kind of behavior just proves how totally inept the "security" you provide really is. One of these days somebody who isn't totally incompetent is going to succeed with some kind of attack; there's nothing you can do to get around it. I just pray it isn't a butt-bomb, otherwise (if past behavior is any indication) TSA will implement mandatory cavity searches.

Your efforts to "reach out" to people with medical conditions and disabilities reflect the usual able-bodied attitude towards those who do not fit the social "norm."

Your new policy of having a passenger with a disability call a "coordinator" is a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act, as well as the Fourth Amendment. A person with disabilities should not have to jump through hoops to be treated like a human being! In cases where a policy affects the individual, it is the responsibility of the PEOPLE CREATING THE IMPEDIMENT to make the environment the "least restrictive" possible. And the TSA is utterly failing to do so!

Not to mention - I don't think there are many people with disabilities employed by the TSA. Therefore, it's not *our* job to explain the "best possible way to be screened" to one of your agents. That's YOUR job.

How about dealing with *my* disability? I am unable to stomach "trained" government "officers" abusing the Constitutional rights of Americans. I'm warning the TSA now - I may become physically ill when/if treated the way thousands are treated every day.

I am now more terrorfied of going through airport security, than I am of a terrorist attack. Do I need to rethink safety?

These new procedures are clearly a joke, considering the TSA has never actually caught any terrorists with it's heavy handed techniques. I will be flying today, and will be publicly demanding that that the TSA stop violating our Fourth Amendment rights of unreasonable search and seizure.

I've been checked by my state and approved to carry a concealed weapon. Why can't that be enough to bypass screening and carry my pistol on an airplane flight? Bearing arms HAS recently been found to be a Constitutional Right. Since passenger intervention has saved more planes than the TSA ever dreamed of, wouldn't this be a very good thing?

It your agents were the least bit competent this never would have happened in the first place. Now you try to present it as some sort of great benevolence by Administrator Pistole. What a crock! Why did the agents involved act so carelessly and inhumanely?

Oh, wait... I know... they're TSA. Their job is to be careless and inhumane. You treat passengers just like lifeless pieces of meat.

Also, I bet this guy was hesitant about speaking out because of the possible threat of an $11k fine and a legal proceeding brought against him. Those threats that you make against Americans speaking out against their government are very effective.

This would have never happened if you truly had "Highly trained and professional staff". Frequent Travelers know the truth.

So what about the TSA employee from ATL that is in jail for sexual assault right now. I dont for a minute that this is a "isolated incident" but more indicative of a more extensive endemic problem that is from bottom and top with in TSA.

Whats wrong curtis you feeling the heat under your feet from people getting mad and going to the news instead of the useless complaint process that are never answered. I can speak of 5 serious complaints that have never been addressed even though you said "you looked into them" and found no record. hmmm thats odd thats because they were thrown in the trash rather then addressing them. I guess thats how you have such a low complaint rate because its easier to deny theirs a problem when you throw the complaints in the trash.

Interesting optoutday observation in the 3 airports i have been at today, that either the scanners are off or that the "random" selection level is lower then normal its about 1n10 from 1n5. Pistole your comments about being "irresponsible" is irresponsible yourself you have purposely ignored data that said these scanners arent effective in finding objects, this has been pointed out by isreali security experts as well as other security experts around the world.

Then there are the statistics that show the risk of dying in a plane crash as a result of terrorism is about the same as being struck by lighting 5times in a row and winning the powerball lottery all in the same day.

Mean while each month more americans are killed on american highways then were killed in 9/11, and the ecomomic damage from those wrecks each month is more then the economic damage and loss is greater then 9/11, so why is the narrow focus on passengers when there are so many exposed back doors (cargo in the belly, airport staff, ramp workers, fuelers, caters, TSAs own staff where there are many many reports of theft) where people arent checked

TSA Delenda Est

This comment probably wont see the light of day but thats okay, i have a copy of it to send onto the OIG, ACLU and EPIC, since curtis you seem to think that its legal and acceptable to quash first amendment rights. despite the laws of the land saying otherwise.

This would have never happened if you truly had "Highly trained and professional staff". Frequent Travelers know the truth.

So what about the TSA employee from ATL that is in jail for sexual assault right now. I dont for a minute that this is a "isolated incident" but more indicative of a more extensive endemic problem that is from bottom and top with in TSA.

Whats wrong curtis you feeling the heat under your feet from people getting mad and going to the news instead of the useless complaint process that are never answered. I can speak of 5 serious complaints that have never been addressed even though you said "you looked into them" and found no record. hmmm thats odd thats because they were thrown in the trash rather then addressing them. I guess thats how you have such a low complaint rate because its easier to deny theirs a problem when you throw the complaints in the trash.

TSA Delenda Est

This comment probably wont see the light of day but thats okay, i have a copy of it to send onto the OIG, ACLU and EPIC, since curtis you seem to think that its legal and acceptable to quash first amendment rights. despite the laws of the land saying otherwise.

Interesting optoutday observation in the 3 airports i have been at today, that either the scanners are off or that the "random" selection level is lower then normal its about 1n10 from 1n5. Pistole your comments about being "irresponsible" is irresponsible yourself you have purposely ignored data that said these scanners arent effective in finding objects, this has been pointed out by isreali security experts as well as other security experts around the world.

Then there are the statistics that show the risk of dying in a plane crash as a result of terrorism is about the same as being struck by lighting 5times in a row and winning the powerball lottery all in the same day.

Mean while each month more americans are killed on american highways then were killed in 9/11, and the ecomomic damage from those wrecks each month is more then the economic damage and loss is greater then 9/11, so why is the narrow focus on passengers when there are so many exposed back doors (cargo in the belly, airport staff, ramp workers, fuelers, caters, TSAs own staff where there are many many reports of theft) where people arent checked

TSA Delenda Est

This comment probably wont see the light of day but thats okay, i have a copy of it to send onto the OIG, ACLU and EPIC, since curtis you seem to think that its legal and acceptable to quash first amendment rights. despite the laws of the land saying otherwise.

"Pistole said some passenger descriptions of the procedures are "so wildly outside the standard operating protocols that it just absolutely should not be happening. If it is, then we'll take appropriate action."

"If we receive any complaints from a passenger about something happening, then we immediately follow up both with that passenger and with our security officers," he said."

Nice job trying to pin responsibility for a successfull screening on the disabled. You should have trained staff and not expect us to try and locate competence within your organisation. Simply disgusting.

I can guess what's going to happen here. The mainstream media players with their gnatlike attention spans will get tired of reporting on the TSA abusing people with disabilities. Eventually these horrible incidents will just be accepted as breaking a few eggs to make an omelet.

What puzzles me most is the fact that TSA has all of this info on the TSA.GOV website on how they're trained to deal with persons who have disabilities and medical devices. Then we here about this? The man told the TSA individual that he had this and was ignored.

Thinking the OIG report was right on when it said training is poor and needs major changes. Pistole's apology was the right thing to do. But, in addition, the TSA person who did this should have been identified and held up to the same public embarrassment!

As one with a serious hearing disability I'm very worried about my next experience with TSA.

Your friend Ethel wrote: "This comment probably wont see the light of day but thats okay, i have a copy of it to send onto the OIG, ACLU and EPIC, since curtis you seem to think that its legal and acceptable to quash first amendment rights. despite the laws of the land saying otherwise."

LOL... Seriously... LOL.

Having a comment that's not approved on a blog is a quashing your First Amendment rights? Also, please note. It's properly written as First Amendment, with the F and the A capitalized.

What law school did you go to Ethel? You know, so aspiring lawyers know to stay about 150 miles away from it.

But enough sarcasm: It's ridiculous to suggest that having a moderated blog (whether run by a government agency or not) and not getting your comment approved is quashing your First Amendment rights.

The First Amendment does not require that you be provided with a platform from which to speak. So it cannot reasonably be construed as preventing the government from creating a blog that solicits comments but has both a acceptable comment policy and active moderation.

This is a complete invasion of a person's privacy. This is absolutely insane. I will protest these body scans and pat downs that these TSA employees are operating. The next time I travel I will wear a bikini like the woman I saw on Robin Meade this morning.

I know of so many people now who do not fly because of these new security regulations. It's a disgrace.

I have an ostomy. I am NOT disabled. I cannot imagine how calling ahead to coordinate my screening at my local airport would help. Does this mean that as I approach the screening area, someone will loudly shout, "Ostomy girl is here!" A few years ago, my mother was loudly referred to as a HIP because her artificial joint set off alarms.

The First Amendment does not require that you be provided with a platform from which to speak. So it cannot reasonably be construed as preventing the government from creating a blog that solicits comments but has both a acceptable comment policy and active moderation.

Questions?

November 24, 2010 11:13 PM

..................

Actions by the government to chill free speech are not permissible.

The United States government, DHS, and TSA chose to create this blog.

That being, it is a violation to restrict any contributors speech. This blog is decidedly political as is the speech hear.

I would think that a group of people whose mission is to defend the Constitution of the United States would do just that rather than violate that oath.

I'll tell you all what drives me crazy. We are told that all this screening is necessary to prevent another shoe or underwear bomber. But both those guys boarded their flights in Europe. IOW, the bad guys have already figured out how to deal with the TSA. They don't.

So the TSA is guarding the wrong rathole simply because it's the only one available.

This post is a very interesting insight into the culture of the TSA, and what a smarmy, disingenuous, blame-the-victim post it is. The poor man's bag did not leak, as you say it did. It was dislodged by the insensitive and heavy handed actions of a clearly undertrained TSO, who then left the man to struggle with his humiliation alone. But as you say, it was kinda his fault anyway, because he did not put a big flashing light on his head saying 'I am disabled'.

A bureaucracy that refuses to acknowledge its mistakes and learn from them is one of the more dangerous forces on the face of the earth. Rather than sugar coat and use weasel words, you would be much better off saying "This was a shocker, it never should have happened, we apologise without reservation, and we promise to learn from it".

I was yelled at by a TSA screener the last time I flew out of Abq, NM. He had told me if I had a belt on to take it off. I didn't hear him (I'm almost deaf!) so when I walked thru the scanner it went off. He then yelled "I THOUGHT I TOLD YOU TO TAKE OFF YOUR BELT!" Such rude behavior to a person WHO HELPS PAY YOUR SALARY!

Is Pistole going to apologize for the TSA ignoring its own screening rules on breastmilk, holding mother for 45 mins in special screening to teach her a lesson ... all on TSA videotape: http://www.menwithfoilhats.com/2010/11/x-ray-nation-tsa-glass-box-mother-over-stored-breast-milk/

Can't wait to hear the TSA spin on this one.

Frankly, your boss and the TSA just needs to simply apologize to the entire nation for how it's destroyed any pleasure in flying and hurting innocents in the name of "security".

You know, this just shows that the TSA doesn't have the necessary training at all to do what they say they're there to do. If they don't know how to deal with a urostomy bag, that's a big security hole. They should know exactly what the main varieties of urostomy bag look like, what they look like full and how to deal with them safely if they've been weaponised. That could be anything up to a litre of liquid explosive or a bacterial culture on the plane or splashed around the terminal because the training just isn't fit for purpose. Do they even have bomb boxes for storing potential explosives in until explosives experts can render them safe, or do they just throw these suspicious liquids they confiscate into a generic bin and dump them in the trash without a second thought?

This debacle and many others show that TSA staff are not competent enough to provide fair and equal treatment to all passengers and are not competent enough to protect travellers from known threats and easily predicted ones.

I'm not encouraged by these types of efforts - wimpy apologies and vague, sheepish comments like "oh, that shouldn't have happened - we're looking into it." I will only feel that you're taking things seriously when I hear, "the TSO involved in the incident has been fired, and is subject to prosecution."

Incidentally, you REALLY need to address the glove issue on this blog. I'm far more afraid of catching MRSA than the possibility of an underwear bomber on my flight.

The bag didn't "leak" it was spilled by a thoughtlessly cruel TSO. There's no accident when it's carelessness.

there might be retraining... that's all?? How about actually punishing the people who made the unforgivable mistake? At the very least, the TSO should now be unemployed and his supervisors/trainers should be reprimanded.

Let's say that someone does actually contact a TSA Customer Support Manager (which you can't do through that link--it's for compliments or complaints) in advance. How can you ensure that any special screening procedures will be followed? How do we know that the officers and managers on duty will actually pay attention when the traveller says that they've made arrangements through the TSA? If I have something printed out, what happens if I'm pulled aside for a screening and I'm then told I can't touch my belongings?

Sorry, but I've just heard of too many examples where a traveller knows the TSA regulations and procedures better than the gate officers.

I have chronic IBS, and in order to stay healthy I need to drink a lot of water, per my doctor's orders. Flying is especially problematic since I can get dehydrated so easily on a flight.

Normally, TSA agents follow the proper procedure when I travel with my water (which is a medical liquid): I go through the family/medical liquids lane, declare my water, and they test it.

Recently, I left a small station. Before I even started putting my things in the plastic buckets, one of the agents looked at my water and said "You can't travel with that." I asked to speak with the supervisor, who was standing right by, who flatly informed me I'd need to go dump it out. I informed him it was a medical liquid, and he told me to go dump it out anyway.

Fearing the worst, I chose to comply. Before one suggests water fountains, please remember:

- Water fountain water isn't purified -- usually I can tolerate it, but sometimes it's hard for me to drink enough of it.- Water fountain water is ice-cold, and my water needs to be room temperature.- It's difficult/problematic to fill up bottles from a fountain. I need enough water to get through a 5 hour flight.

What can I do, beside avoid ever flying out of that particular airport again?

Making a four year old boy to take off his braces. You people should all be fired. Maybe businesses should not allow you people to have to be stripped search before you enter in an establishment to eat.

wow. tsa you rock! at least you didn't arrest the gentlemen for a concealed biological weapon. great job. it really makes me feel safe knowing that americans with disabilities are criminalized and marginalized by our public servants when trying to fly the un-friendly skies...

Bob, I followed the link from your phrase "can contact one of our Customer Support Managers" and just got a generic letter from John Pistole. Can you describe precisely where to find phone numbers for the specific customer support managers we can call?

I will not fall into the trap of a "tit for tat" situation. I will not explain why my wife and two young daughters do not want to fly. They only suffered silently through the entire ordeal you put them through WHILE I WAS DEPLOYED. I will not and refuse to explain the reason why I as an African American Active Duty Army Captain gets harassed and berated everytime I travel out of uniform.I JUST WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT NO MATTER WHAT YOU DO OR SAY I WILL CONTINUE TO SEREVE AND PROTECT THIS GREAT COUNTRY WITH PRFESSIONALISM,HONOR, DUTY AND RESPECT NO MATTER HOW YOU CONTINUE TO DISGRACE IT AND HER CITIZENS.

Dear Mr pistole,9/11 was pilots that caused the problem. Now pilots are all now screened very closely but go thru the scaners anyway. Now the ground crew needs to have the same check/scan as pasengers and pilots because some people go on a tear and do mean things for no apearent reason after a couple of years of employment...I think the main problem is people are disturbed when strangers touch them. So change your gloves as doctors do after an inspection.So there you have it from one of the miss informed public. You might start a news letter or get a new press secretary to keep us feeling better while being exposed in the flesh and internally. Maybe have a computer response while being scaned that is informative. "We scan x number parcels/bags a day, X individuals are scaned a month, you are finished please walk forward" Well you can tell it has been several years since I have flown and my confidence is still not in the system. As a last observation your doing a good job cause nothing is being reported to the public so they can vilifie you or complement you.....

We need to remember that TSA has thousands of employees and with every organization there are good and not-so-good employees. They must also balance civil liberties with national security and are doing a very good job! TSA will train, re-assign or terminate the employees not measuring up to their professional standards.Would you want to work with a bad employee? Well, neither does the TSA!

I am still waiting for an email response by TSA on CLEAN GLOVES. I have disablities, which results in several metal implants, one large one in my shoulder. I GET PATDOWNS..so must be in the 3% ALL the time. Last trip, asked for clean gloves--they were not available. TSA agent reversed her gloves, patted me down. I then got hives from knee to ankle on both legs where the gloves touched skin. Hives and running sores for 5 days. Now I have a prescription for NON LATEX gloves, and CLEAN gloves from my doctor. Plus she provided Clean non laxtex gloves for me to provide directly to the TSA agent next time. Will the agent be able to USE them? Can you answer this question on this blog. TSA does not reply.

This just shows what is totally wrong with the TSA and their approach to security; an inept organization with even more inept personnel. You put yourself above the law under the guise of protecting the people. What a joke. Couple this with the recent revelation of those who stole money from checked bags and well as other thefts by your uncaring and self-serving staff. A friend of mine and me had things stolen from our checked bags as well. Trust is the greatest thing one can earn and your organization has not earned one ounce of trust. Give it up, you’re a bureaucracy that is so misguided and screwed up that if you were a private sector business with a normal P&L that relied on even a minimal degree of profit and customer service to stay afloat, you would be out of business within a year.

It's not a perfect world people.....It's called a mistake! Whoa! like you never make them. Some of those "dumb" procedures wouldn't be so dumb if they saved the lives of your family and friends by keeping the wrong person from boarding and aircraft. It is consequent to the fact that there are VERY determined people out their who want to kill the innocent and if one man get a little wet for the sake of trying to protect many people life goes on...

On 6/22/11 my pricacy was invaded my a tsa worker who had both hands feeling up my private parts she even did a mamagran on my breast and to me thats was very embaressing she wouldnt listen when i tried to tell her i have a spinal cord stimmilator in my back and a travel id fr boston scientific research to let them know thats why the alarm went off this is a disgrace to we the travelling people.this incident happen at jfk

Some tsa employees at MIA are rude, unprofessional and just plain inmature. On 11/28/2011 I was coming back to IAH from my cruise vacation around 11:00 when My wife and I went through the TSA checkpoint.My wife is young and beautiful so when she went through xrays they where smiling and snickering among them including a hispanic female and a bald guy. I was close to the female when I heard her say: "Oh no you did'nt" to her coworker the bald guy sitting at a monitor. Them two where smiling, laughing Iike HS kids. I Have heard the stories but this is the first time I encountered personally.

Until everyone contacts their senators and congressmen nothing will change. Only a groundswell of communications with lawmakers will ever change the TSA. It is an organization which has proven that it refuses to change. I've contacted mine, what about all of you? Your are speaking to deaf ears here.

I don't know where to go with this. My husband "surrendered" his 2.75" POCKETKNIFE at the Spokane Intl Airport, 3/14/12 before boarding his flight to Denver CO. He stupidly kept his knife, which he has owned for 20 YEARS, in his POCKET when he got in line. Since it has become "part" of him and a habit to keep, he did not think about having it. So, his options were put it in check through bag, mail it to himself, put it in his car. He had already been in line for 10 minutes. His bag was checked through and on it's way to the plane. It was 5:30 a.m. and not much open to allow him to "mail" it to himself. And his car was not in the parking lot. It was on its way home, which is 1.5 hrs from Spokane, with me, his wife. Now that the knife has been "SURRENDERED", there is no recourse to recover or claim it. Apparently, surrendered items go to some black hole, landfill or surplus store to be sold to some incredibly lucky person. I don't know who gets the money. I would love to see a program installed to allow "SURRENDERED" items to be returned. Oh,by the way,due to cell phone technology, which I can operate, I was able to turn around and go back to the airport but TO NO AVAIL because it had been SURRENDERED. TSA agents are well trained to respond with "We can't help you", "Here's a number you can call". Guess what, the folks at the phones can't help me either. So, I visit the website as recommended. And I find the list of things you can/can't take on the plane. Imagine my surprise when I see that Little Ms/Mr Sewing Person can take on a pair of pointed scissors up to 4" long, and Ms/Mr Tool Carrier can take a SCREWDRIVER up to 7" long. BUT someone who has owned and carried a 2.75" POCKETKNIFE almost all of his 50+ years cannot take said POCKETKNIFE. Why would someone need a 7" screwdriver on a plane? Why would a 4" pair of pointed scissors be allowed on the plane? BUT NOT A POCKETKNIFE!!! To borrow a phrase: "Am I gettin' through to you, Mr. Beal?" An explanation would be appreciated but not expected. Mr. Pistole is a very busy person. I am but one in millions of travelers. But I am not a happy traveler. Someday I will be back to my happy self, I will try to remember to remind my husband to put his knife away in the suit case while I travel with my scissors and screwdriver. Go figure. My name is Carol Boyce. I don't have a google account. I don't know what OpenID is. I don't like using Anonymous. I hope Name/URL works.

Amendment IVThe right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

You know, it really doesn't matter that the TSA humiliated anyone and it doesn't really matter if their new scanners give us all brain cancer.

The issue is their violation of the 4th amendment is the issue.

Buying passage on an aircraft, ship, train or bus is not probable cause that someone has committed a crime or intends to commit a crime.